Marquetry Mirror
This hand held mirror was one of my first attempts at marquetry. I saw the plan in the June 2000 issue of Wood Magazine and immediately decided I wanted to try my hand at it. It was challenging to say the least. I made 2 or three attempts at the marquetry before I had results that I was satisfied with.
The outer part of the frame is made of black Walnut, and the back panel is made of Curly Maple. The rose petals are made of Purple Heart, while the stem is made of Cherry. These are all woods that I had worked with before, and they compliment each other beautifully.
Mirror Inlay
I made the marquetry inlay’s using a Double Bevel technique where the inlay and the hole for the inlay are cut at the same time. This is done using a scroll-saw and tipping the table of the scroll-saw on an angle. The angle depends on the thickness of the inlay stock and the thickness of the blade being used. If done properly, the inlay piece fits perfectly into the hole.
The black band you see around the back panel is actually a black epoxy, which holds the mirror and back panel in place. Once the frame and the inlay in the back panel is done, then everything is assembled centering the back panel in the opening of the frame. Then I mix up some epoxy with some black colorant and pour it into the groove between the frame and the back panel.
Once the epoxy is dry I sand it and the rest of the piece down to 320. What you end up with is what looks like a very smooth looking inlay. The finish is a clear oil based product called Seal-a-Cell with its companion topcoat called Arm-R-Seal.
Mirror
I have made several of these mirrors now for family and friends. I have begun coming up with my own designs for the inlays, and have started using the technique on other projects as well.
